This invention relates to a manually propelled material handling vehicle, such as a wheelbarrow, hand truck, or the like, having braking means for permitting the operator to control the speed of the vehicle on a decline while maintaining a firm grip on the handle bar of the vehicle to guide the vehicle. The specific disclosure herein is that of a wheelbarrow, but the invention hereof is not limited to a particular type of material handling vehicle.
Wheelbarrows are universally utilized in the construction industry for transporting building materials, such as bricks, sand, and mortar from one place to another on a construction site. A wheelbarrow load of the above mentioned materials may weigh several hundred pounds, yet the operator must often push a fully loaded wheelbarrow under his own power up inclines, such as walkways, leading from one construction level to another.
Even more difficult is the task of handling a loaded wheelbarrow on a decline. Not only does an operator have to guide the wheelbarrow, but because of the inertia generated from the downward movement of the heavy load, the operator must actually exert pull opposite the direction of movement to prevent the wheelbarrow from moving too fast. In some instances the load may be too heavy to be controlled in the above manner. As a result, the operator may lose control of the wheelbarrow, whereupon it continues down the decline out of control, risking damage to property and injury to others nearby.
In an effort to solve the aforementioned problems, brakes have been proposed for wheelbarrows or other material handling vehicles to permit the operator to more easily control the speed thereof on a decline. However, all such previously proposed brake mechanisms have been inadequate and have presented problems in guiding or controlling the vehicle while operating the brake mechanism.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,716,031, issued Aug. 23, 1955, discloses a hand brake for a wheelbarrow which includes a brake lever similar to those used on bicycles secured to one of the handle bars of a wheelbarrow adjacent the hand grip and extending below the hand grip in vertically spaced relation thereto. In order to engage the brake and slow the wheelbarrow, the operator must release his grip with one hand and reach downwardly to grasp and pull the brake lever upwardly toward the hand grip with his fingers.
In doing this he is unable to maintain a firm grip with that hand. He therefore risks losing control of the wheelbarrow, either by being unable to balance the wheelbarrow properly, or by the wheelbarrow pulling away from his loosened grip. Thus, while the brake disclosed in the above cited patent enables the operator to control the speed of the wheelbarrow, the method in which the brake is activated does not permit the operator to maintain control in guiding and balancing it.